Fairhair Dynasty
The following is the chronicle for House Fairhair, a dynasty of Nordic rulers in the snowy region of Skyrim in the Second Era. The House was incredibly might and proud for quite some time, conquering most of Skyrim and winning the Jagged Crown within three generations. However, following a series of assassinations and civil wars, as well as the deadly Knahaten Plague, the Fairhairs were wiped out and Skyrim was left in chaos. Background In the second era, the Imperial Interregnum marked a time of great turmoil Cyrodiil. The Reman dynasty had been ended and no one was left to secure the Imperial throne. Therefore, the realms of Tamriel were split into countless different kingdoms and counties, with dozens of rulers laying claim to their respective lands. In the northernmost part of Skyrim, the Kingdom of Haafingar was locked in a series of bitter wars with its neighboring kingdoms to the south. A young, lowborn general by the name of Balgruuf rose to greatness when he joined Haafingar's military. He quickly became famous for being a mighty warrior with an impeccable ability for leadership. He led entire regiments of men to countless victories, earning him land and titles as a reward. A succession crisis eventually occurred upon the king's death. He left no suitable heirs; thus, the lords and ladies of Haafingar convened for a small moot to determine who the next king should be. Though many argued for their own claim to the throne, the majority fought for Balgruuf to become their next king. Some had their own motives for electing him; he was kind, benevolent, and thus easily manipulated. Many, however, truly believed he would make a great ruler and could potentially unite Skyrim under one banner. Thus, House Fairhair was established, with Balgruuf Fairhair as its first official member. King Balgruuf Fairhair of Haafingar (Reign: 2E 430 - 2E 457) Balgruuf began his reign by securing his dynasty with a marriage. While his vassals and council urged him to marry a highborn noble, the king decided to marry for love instead of alliances. He had met a lowborn shield maiden by the name of Jolethe who shared many of his qualities. The two fell in love before Balgruuf was king and it was decided that they would marry. Balgruuf's early reign was marked with a series of wars in an effort to unite Skyrim. He attacked neighboring kingdoms such as Hjaalmarch and Winterhold in order to secure more territory. Balgruuf lost his first wife from Brown Rot, leaving him devastated. Eventually he did remarry as he knew he must have an heir. His second wife gave him four children: Ingjard, Dagny, Burd and Fjol. Balgruuf's reign was nearly cut short when his most powerful vassal and spymaster plotted against him. After the conspiracy was revealed, Balgruuf attempted to arrest the vassal but instead faced a rebellion. Though he was outnumbered, with a bit of outside help from a mercenary company Balgruuf managed to stop the revolt. Balgruuf's late reign was marked by a series of conquests in the south of Skyrim. He attacked nearly all of the large kingdoms (namely Whiterun, Winterhold and The Rift) and acquired a great deal of land. However, his health took a turn for the worse when he was diagnosed with cholera, which is perhaps Tamriel's deadliest disease. Knowing that this was the end, Balgruuf returned home to spend his last days in the Blue Palace with his family. He ordered a moot to elect the new king; nobody dared elect anybody but Burd, his oldest son. King Burd Fairhair of Haafingar (Reign: 2E 457 - 2E 466) Much like his father, king Burd was a great warrior after having trained under the best knights and fighters that Balgruuf could find. He assumed control of his father's armies and continued the conquest of Skyrim. Burd didn't possess the same kingly qualities that his father did, such as justice and duty. He instead focused solely on conquest and vowed not to stop until he was either dead or the High King. Calling himself a warlord and claiming all of the surrounding lands, many vassals were uneasy with his rule to say the least. King Burd faced a great number of plots and factions against him in his early reign, making it difficult to focus on his wars. King Burd accomplished much as a ruler, winning numerous wars against his neighbors. However, his lack of popularity finally got to him. In a plot to overthrow Burd, the king was assassinated in his tent in the middle of the night. A low ranking vassal named Galmar "The Devil" was responsible, and many speculate he was hired by the new king, Odfel I of House Ghilred, to carry out the plot. Odfel had the most votes in the moot and thus was elected king, kicking the Fairhairs out of the Blue Palace. Nonetheless, Burd's oldest daughter, Edith, was allowed to keep the rest of her father's titles under a regency council. High Queen Edith I of Skyrim (Reign: 2E 475 - 2E 527) Most of the former king Burd's titles were passed to his oldest daughter Edith, who was seven at the time of her father's demise. These included the Jarldoms of Haafingar and Hjaalmarch, and a few small Thanedoms. Still, she was virtually powerless and was a symbol of the downfall of House Fairhair. However, luck was on Edith's side. Though many vassals supported the new king Odfel, it was only by fear and intimidation. The new king was a tyrant and now that he was in power, many of his previous supporters turned against him. In secret, almost all of the king's vassals pledged their support for Jarl Edith when the time came for her to come of age. As she waited, she watched as the new king tore her father's realm apart. Poor management of the military led to the realm becoming weaker, and many vassals outright refused to lend their troops. While on the brink of a civil war, multiple nations declared war on Haafingar by means of conquest, reclaiming their old lands that Burd and Balgruuf had captured so long ago. The years passed by and the formerly seven year old Jarl Edith grew to be sixteen. When the time came, she called her banners and marched on the Blue Palace with an army that outnumbered her king at least six to one. She demanded that he leave the palace and surrender his crown, or else she would turn the Blue Palace red. He begrudgingly agreed, and the Jarl became a Queen, putting House Fairhair on the throne again. Queen Edith was a remarkably kind and benevolent ruler, but a Nord nonetheless; thus, she continued her father's conquests. She had three husbands during her time as queen, each of which died from varying causes. Only one of her children survived, Torsten, who was, therefore, her heir. In her twilight years, Edith grew tired of simply being Queen of Haafingar. She had conquered enough territory and garnered enough support, she believed, to become Skyrim's High Queen. After crowning herself, the other rulers did not react kindly to someone else claiming the kingdom, and Skyrim became locked in a series of bitter wars. Edith died shortly afterwards of poor health, leaving everything to her son Torsten. High King Torsten I of Skyrim (Reign: 2E 527 - 2E 529) Kind and caring like his mother, the middle-aged Torsten was crowned High King following her unfortunate death. To finish his family's legacy, he vowed to complete the Unification of Skyrim that his great grandfather had started so many years ago. He was unable to accomplish this feat, however, as he was quickly and easily assassinated. High King Sjoring I of Skyrim (Reign: 2E 529 - 2E 539) Sjoring was the last Fairhair High King of Skyrim, and his reing was marked with chaos, war and plague. He faced a great civil war among his vassals who were hungry for power; they eventually won, changing the succession laws from primogeniture to elective. From there, the many Jarls were locked in a brutal struggle to win the votes necessary to be elected, while Sjoring desperately fought for his daughter to take the throne. Meanwhile, foreign kingdoms viewed Skyrim as an incredibly tempting target that could be easily taken due to all of the squabble. Suddenly and quietly, Skyrim was completely overtaken by the Knahaten plague, which infected every single county in the kingdom. Millions died; the commoners suffered the most, but countless lords and ladies, landed and unlanded alike, were killed as well. The flu was swift: it could kill within a day. There was no way to stop it, and there were no recorded survivors. Most landed nobles' families were killed as well, leaving many lands with no clear heir. Skyrim was in absolute chaos, which reached its climax when the plague finally reached the Blue Palace. Sjoring was infected, along with his daughters and heirs. Within a week, the entire Fairhair dynasty was dead. Skyrim went on to be won by Haskill Hoagbellow, the former king of the Rift, though his rule did not last long. Skyrim was broken up once again, though few survived long enough to fight for the crown. Complete List of House Fairhair Members Generation One * King Balgruuf Fairhair - First Fairhair member. King of Haafingar. Generation Two * King Burd Fairhair - King of Haafingar. Balgruuf's first son. * High Queen Edith Fairhair - Burd's daughter and heir. High Queen of Skyrim. * Princess Fryfnhild Fairhair - Burd's second daughter. * Princess Ingjard Fairhair - Balgruuf's first child. Burd's sister. * Princess Dagny Fairhair - Balgruuf's second child. Burd's sister. * Prince Fjol Fairhair - Balgruuf's fourth child. Burd's brother. Member of the Fighter's Guild. Generation Three * Prince Ulfric Fairhair - Edith's first child. Thane of Dawnstar. * Prince Luven Tor - Edith's second child. Thane of Eastmarch. * Grerid - Edith's bastard-born daughter. * High King Torsten Fairhair - Edith's fourth child and heir. High King of Skyrim. * Prince Savard Fairhair - Edith's fifth child. Mayor of Sunderstone. Generation Four * Avulstein - Torsten's bastard-born son. Member of the Dark Brotherhood. * High King Sjoring Fairhair - Torsten's second son and heir. High King of Skyrim. * Princess Skjorta Fairhair - Torsten's third child. * Princess Edith II Fairhair - Torsten's fourth child. Trivia and Notes * The Fairhairs were a product of FromanSK's campaign in the Elder Kings ''mod for ''Crusader Kings II, a total conversion modification for the game that allows players to rule the various regions of Tamriel as a Count, King or even Emperor. All of the lives and events of the Fairhairs were either adapted or based on the lives of the in-game characters. * Though not officially a member of House Fairhair, Avulstein, the bastard child of High King Torsten, was an assassin for the Dark Brotherhood. Avulstein was disowned by his family, and many suspect that he was responsible for the murder of his father. Family Tree Category:Factions Category:Bloodlines Category:Dynasties